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Cisco CEO: Tone among business and political leaders is 'cautious optimism'

On Cisco's (CSCO) Q2 earnings conference call, CEO John Chambers noted that in his recent conversations with global business and government leaders, the tone was "cautious optimism." Chambers did not, however, expect that optimism to translate into immediate GDP growth. He said the company's gross margins continue to be very stable, operating margins are strong, and expenses are growing in line with revenue growth. The global recovery in Europe continues to be soft, especially in the southern regions. On a positive note, Chambers said Enterprise and U.S. commercial orders continue to improve, which he thinks is an early indicator of future GDP growth. CFO Frank A. Calderoni said the company continued to see strong growth across all geographic regions, with the U.S. federal business continuing to be the most challenging in terms of market. Some stabilization was seen in Europe, but it was still too early to call it a recovery. Wireless continues to be one of the company's fastest growing businesses, with revenue growth of 27%, the fifth consecutive quarter of record revenue. Overall, management said it was confident with the financial model, believes Cisco is in a position of strength, and remains focused on execution.